By: The Dawning Duo Michael and Gracie
Who says Sundays are for sleeping in? We had an enormous amount of trips up and at ’em with the sun this morning, marveling at the pinks and purples in the sky and making it that much closer to their ending destination. For a lot of folks, this is the the last Sunday of the summer with Apogee. For others, it marks a week until their adventures as pods, hiking groups, and service-doers come to a close. With not much time under the sun left together, there sure are some pretty memorable moments being made. Let’s get to it!
Maine Coast College Essay (MCCE3): After a morning of writing, the MCCE crew headed to the nearby Bates-Morse Mountain Conservation for a beautiful hike to a remote ocean beach.The gang is ending their evening with some free time as they gear up to make revisions to their pieces tomorrow.
Cape Cod & the Islands (CI3): These tubular travelers traded the rolling roads for breaking waves as they surfed this morning! With sand and sun abound, they were quickly turned into expert surfers with the help of their professional outfitters – cowabunga! Even with testing their balance on the beach they were still able to get in 10 miles of riding today, and refuel with a scrumptious evening meal too.
New England Mountains & Coast (NEMC3): Alarm clocks were buzzing early this morning as these NEMC3ers were on the trail up Mt. Lincoln and Mt. Lafayette at 6:29am! They discovered the true meaning of the Falling Waters Trail as they passed by many beautiful waterfalls on their way up these peaks in the White Mountains. Shining Rock offered some great overviews of the Franconia Range – when you’re above 5000 feet in elevation it’s hard not to stop and look around!
Caribbean Service Adventure (CSA3): The CSA crew enjoyed an amazing day of surfing at a world-renowned beach in Mayaguez. After a morning of surf lessons with their guide, Ramse, the gang enjoyed a picnic lunch as they looked out over the clear blue ocean vista. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.
Vermont to Montreal A (VMA3): Bienvenue à Montréal! The VMA crew made it to Canada today, crossing over the border on their 33-mile day. Now in flat farmland that lays in between the Vermont border and the city of Montréal, the group can really put in some miles in the days to come.
Vermont to Montreal B (VM3B): These VM3Bers rode on both bikes and boats today as they made it one step closer to the Canadian border. They left Burlington with pedals whizzing and were able to snag a ride on the ferry to Grand Isle State Park. Tomorrow they’ll be unearthing their passports as they bike into Canuck country!
Maine’s Downeast Explorer A (DEX3): Our DEX troopers enjoyed another beautiful day in Acadia. The crew not only completed an amazing hike, but they also got the opportunity to explore the town of bustling town of Bar Harbor. Once owned mainly by the Rockefeller family, Acadia was the first national park to be composed of lands donated entirely by individuals.
Costa Rica Language & Service (CRLS3): On their last day in Turrialba,the CRLS crew went out with an action-packed day of whitewater rafting. As the group packs their things and prepares to head into the rainforest tomorrow, they are looking back on reflecting on the amazing time they’ve had thus far in Turrialba.
Coast to Quebec A (CQ2A): Our CQ2Aers hit the whitewater today on the Kennebec River on their adrenaline-pumping “rest” day. While not exactly an idle day, the CQA crew’s legs did enjoy a day off the bike as they gear up for their longest ride of trip tomorrow — 55 miles.
Coast to Quebec B (CQ2B): Conquering another tough day with aplomb, the CQB crew has made it all the way up to Greenville. At a beautiful campground on the shores of Moosehead Lake, the gang is going to be collecting mail today and care-package candy never tasted so good. The group is in high spirits and is excited for their day of whitewater rafting tomorrow.
California Mountains & Coast A (CMC3A): Isa and Dave’s crew left the eponymous big trees of Big Tree State Park and headed down to Yosemite this afternoon. After their trip, they took the rest of the day to provision and prep for their upcoming three night stint in the backcountry where they will largely be out of the reach of cell service which sadly means there will likely be no pictures over the next couple of days.
California Mountains & Coast B (CMC3B): These backcountry superstars not only found the prettiest sunrise in Yosemite, they also stumbled upon some cell service to send in the hard evidence! Dressed in their Sunday best, they greeted the sun as it rose over Half Dome in the quiet wilderness of California. They squeezed every drop out of these views for as long as they could, since they’ll be leaving the beautiful backcountry tomorrow.
Montana Service Adventure (MSA2): Another day of service in gorgeous Glacier National Park, another round of kudos for these Montana service women and men! They were back at it in East Glacier getting their hands dirty, and then got to dust up their hiking boots too with another exploration of the park’s many trails. Tooling around Glacier on bikes commences tomorrow!
Northwest Explorer (NWX2): 5 days, 6 nights, and 1 amazing time that these NWX2ers had in the backcountry of North Cascades National Park. After entering back into civilization, they welcomed a rest for their legs with a van transit to Bellingham. Home to some delicious pizza and ice cream, it seems as if this Washington bay city will be treating our trusty backcountry team well!
Pacific Coast A (PC2A): Bonnie and Mike’s dynamos enjoyed a leisurely rest day today on the California Coast. After sleeping in and enjoying a nice big breakfast, the gang had the opportunity to explore Mendocino in the afternoon, stopping into the many shops and bakeries in the quaint little seaside town.
Pacific Coast B (PC2B): On the other hand, no rest for Lindsay and Spencer’s PC2Bers – they were more than up for the challenge of today’s hilly 60 mile ride – they blasted through the highest climb along the Pacific Coast between Canada and Mexico! After defeating the beast of today, they rolled into Mendocino with happily tired spirits and celebrated their approaching rest day tomorrow.
Scottish Highlands Explorer (SHX2): With around 11 miles of mild terrain and miraculous yet rainy views these SHX2ers hiked into to Fort Augustus at the southern end of Loch Ness today. Upon arrival they were able to relax and see all that Fort Augustus had to offer in the afternoon (like scanning the waters for the Loch Ness monster!) Despite the damp conditions, Midge reports that spirits are high and that she and Matt have “the best group ever!” Both the scenery and challenge of the Great Glen Way will ramp up during these final days before they reach their final destination of Inverness.
Alps Explorer (AX2): These Alpen explorers had quite the sweet tooth on their off day today – as is evident in their “ice cream mug shot” compilation. As this is their first and only rest day on the TMB, they took the time for a late morning in camp before heading into Courmayeur to explore the culinary offerings in the quaint little alpine town. After a day full of sweets and napogees they’ll be hitting the trail ready to go tomorrow!
America Coast to Coast 1 (ACC1): After a breezy 68-miler yesterday with a lunch stop in Palm Desert, ACC1 was feelin’ good and enjoying life despite the scorching heat! They had 30 miles of climbing today (meaning 30 miles of Miley Cyrus hitting those high notes in their heads – it’s the cliiiiimb) but the Pacific ocean is in sight. If all goes according to plan, they’ll be dancing in the waves before dinner time here on the east coast tomorrow – we are still in disbelief!
America Coast to Coast 2 (ACC2): It’s the infamous “Desert Day” for these California-committed cyclists, which means avoiding the high heat by breaking up the day of riding. They awoke at the wee hours of the morning and biked through a beautiful sunrise to lunch. These guys made near-record time and were in to 29 Palms before 1 PM PT this afternoon – meaning that they road 90+ miles across the Mojave Desert before lunch. You know, NBD…
